Not be confused with the left-of-center Jewish advocacy group Bend the Arc.

The Arc of the United States, commonly referred to as “The Arc,” is a charitable organization that provides services to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and advocates for public policies related to care for those disabilities. ¹

Background

The organization now known as The Arc of the United States was founded in 1953 as the National Association for Retarded Children, changing its name in 1973 to the National Association for Retarded Citizens and then again in 1981 to the Association for Retarded Citizens (ARC) of the United States. ² In 1992, the organization formally changed its name to Arc of the United States as part of its efforts to discourage the use of the word “retarded” in reference to intellectual and developmental disabilities. ²

Developmental disabilities are defined for federal policy purposes through the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 1975, commonly known as the “DD Act.” ³ The most common developmental disabilities among people served by The Arc are intellectual disability, Down syndrome, autism, cerebral palsy, spina bifida, fetal alcohol syndrome, and fragile X syndrome. ⁴

In its 2024 annual report, The Arc listed 577 state and local chapters across the country, with at least one in every state except Maine. ⁵

As of 2024, The Arc’s endowment was operated by a standalone foundation, the Foundation of the Arc of the United States. ⁶

Advocacy

Since its founding in the 1950s, The Arc has lobbied Congress and state legislators for programs to provide services to people with disabilities and laws that provide them with additional protections. ²

In the 1960s and 1970s, The Arc advocated for the creation of the federal Medicare, Medicaid, and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) programs.  ²  In the 2000s, it proved a strong supporter of the Affordable Care Act.  ²  In the 2020s, The Arc supports expansion of state Medicaid programs, opposes efforts to give states more flexibility in the administration of their Medicaid programs through block-grant funding, and produces state-specific lobbying materials for activists to use in lobbying state legislators. ^{7  2}

It has supported efforts to define people with disabilities as a protected class under federal legislation such as the Fair Housing Act.  ⁸

The Arc supports criminal justice reforms that include additional training for police officers on identifying and engaging with people with disabilities. ⁹

In 2017, The Arc joined other major nonprofit organizations in sending a letter to the Republican and Democratic leaders of Congress opposing proposals to loosen the federal Johnson Amendment’s prohibition on political endorsements by 501(c)(3) organizations. ¹⁰

The Arc opposed efforts by the second Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to downsize the federal workforce, especially at the U.S. Department of Education. ⁸

Funding

State and local chapters pay dues to The Arc’s national organization. In 2024, affiliates paid $2,870,586 in dues, or roughly one-quarter of the national group’s revenues that year.  ¹¹

The Arc also regularly receives grants from governmental agencies. In 2024, it reported receiving $776,404 in government grants.  ¹¹

The Arc frequently receives funding from fraternal organizations such as the Knights of Columbus and the Odd Fellows that list service to people with disabilities as part of their missions. ¹² Other regular funders include disability-focused groups such as the American Association of People with Disabilities, Doug Flutie Jr. Foundation for Autism, and Autism Society of America. ¹²

It regularly receives an annual $25,000 grant from Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA).  ¹²

It has received significant funding from notable left-of-center funders including the Ford Foundation,  ¹³  Wyss Foundation, ¹⁴ Park Foundation, ¹⁵ Tides Foundation, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Sixteen Thirty Fund, Hopewell Fund, Vera Institute of Justice, and National Health Law Program. ¹²

In 2021, it received an $820,000 grant from the labor union-aligned National Domestic Workers Alliance worker center connected to the NDWA’s “Equality Can’t Wait” campaign. ¹⁶

1. “The Arc of the United States: Disability Rights, Advocacy & Inclusion.” The Arc. Accessed January 12, 2026. https://thearc.org/.
2. “History of the Arc.” The Arc. Accessed January 12, 2026. https://thearc.org/about-us/history/.
3. “Disability Rights Timeline.” Temple University Institute on Disabilities. Accessed January 12, 2026. https://disabilities.temple.edu/resources/disability-rights-timeline.
4. “Get the Facts.” The Arc of Opportunity. Accessed January 12, 2026. https://www.arcofopportunity.org/facts.
5. “2024 Annual Report.” The Arc, July 2025. https://thearc.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/2024-Annual-Report.pdf.
6. “Foundation of the Arc of the United States.” ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer. Accessed January 12, 2026. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/521559702.
7. “Get Your State-Specific Medicaid Fact Sheet.” The Arc, October 16, 2025. https://thearc.org/resource/medicaid-data-points-by-state/.
8. Linscott, Robyn. “The Arc Joins Disability and Education Groups to Warn about RIFs at Dept. of Education.” The Arc, October 16, 2025. https://thearc.org/resource/the-arc-joins-disability-and-education-groups-to-warn-about-rifs-at-dept-of-education/.
9. “Disability in the Criminal Justice System.” The Arc. Accessed January 12, 2026. https://thearc.org/our-initiatives/criminal-justice/.
10. “Community Letter in Support of Nonpartisanship.” Council of Nonprofits, September 5, 2017. https://www.councilofnonprofits.org/files/media/documents/2022/community-letter-in-support-of-nonpartisanship-5-12-update.pdf.
11. “The Arc of the United States.” ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer. Accessed January 12, 2026. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/135642032.
12. “ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer Search for Grants to EIN 13-5642032.” ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer. Search performed January 12, 2026. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/full_text_search?form%5B%5D=IRS990ScheduleI&q=13-5642032&sort=best&submit=Apply.
13. “General Support to Raise the Voices and Priorities of People with Disabilities in Federal and State Tax, Budget, and Policy Debates.” Ford Foundation (accessed via Wayback Machine), August 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20240815130902/https://www.fordfoundation.org/work/our-grants/awarded-grants/grants-database/the-arc-of-the-united-states-inc-128641/.
14. “Grants.” Wyss Foundation. Accessed January 12, 2026. https://www.wyssfoundation.org/grants.
15. “Grants Awarded.” Park Foundation. Accessed January 12, 2026. https://www.parkfoundation.org/grantees/the-arc-of-the-united-states/.
16. “National Domestic Workers Alliance Inc, Form 990.” ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, 2022. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/352420942/202202729349300510/IRS990.